Cherish My Loving Curse
by Argentcoeur
Summary: A mere child, innocent and caring, is plagued by something cruel and sadistic. Having been imprisoned for the first 8 years of her life, everything is new to her. Yet how can her secret remain hidden, and how long can she stay untainted?
1. White Night Fantasy

Disclaimer: I'm only connecting my character to lore because I didn't have anything else to go on, and it gave me a starting point. I don't actually own warcraft. What, did you really expect me to say, "Disclaimer: I own Warcraft." Really, what would the point of a disclaimer be then? Now go along your merry way, read the story, review the story, and remember to not sue me.

* * *

_**DEMON CHILD**_

**_~prologue~_**

The snowstorm weighed heavily on her shoulders, but that had never stopped her before. Even though she was scantily clad in only a tight leather bodice, she was not cold; her mind focused firmly on her goal. Though the roads lay abandoned, her tall, twisting black horns would have deterred any who may have wanted to say hello or offer help. Her large batlike wings wavered constantly, preventing snow from landing on the appendages. She held a small bundle tightly in her arms as she trudged through the blizzard.

She had been walking for many long days and night, searching. Yet her heart was frustrated, and so she paused, looking around the silent frozen wasteland, and gently laid the bundle in the snow. She glanced around once more, and then turned back for home.

A few hours later, the bundle was found by a gnome patrol. They found a small note on it that said, '_For Mekgineer Sicco Thermaplugg'_.

The gnomes obliged, and brought the bundle to the advisor.

The bundle was not exactly the best gift to give Sicco at the time. He was currently conspiring against the High Tinker, and did not need a distraction. When he saw what was inside the bundle, he threw it and some food and water in the disused dungeons of Gnomeregan with a shudder. The bundle was none other than a baby girl.

Sicco checked on the girl every day (when he remembered) for the next several years. He provided her with the necessities, but found she could not digest solid food. After eating it, the girl would soon be found vomiting it back up, and spending the rest of the day out cold.

Despite the girl being his, Sicco did not name her. He did not believe 'it' deserved a name.

Sometimes, when he was angry, he would come down and torture her. He would throw furniture, call her terrible things, and even whip her. She did not really know what 'demon', 'hate', or the other words meant. He did this so often, the girl thought it was normal. She was not taught anything else, so why wouldn't she? However, as one might expect, she was miserable.

Seven years later, Sicco was given something odd to think about, something that would keep him busy for the next several years.


	2. Higher Than Hope

**Disclaimer: I dO nOt OwN wArCrAfT.**

* * *

_**DEMON CHILD**_

**~Higher Than Hope~**

The advisor to the High Tinker walked down the dank steps into the equally dank dungeon. (How the girl managed to survive in this place, he would never know.) When he looked into the girl's cell, he found her floating a few inches above the cold stone, looking through the small window at the back. Her tiny bat-like wings peeked out from the rags covering her, fluttering meekly. Sicco stepped on a shard of glass, and the girl turned sharply toward him. She fell to the ground and stood with full attention. She did not smile or frown, nor tremble or flinch under his hard stare. Her dull eyes flickered from beneath a mop of black hair between Sicco and the bars of the window, flaring a bright cobalt every time they landed on the latter. He followed her gaze.

"What were you looking at?" Sicco asked, curiosity prickling his words.

She pointed to the window and stated, "Dwarf."

The gnome raised an eyebrow, wondering where she had learned that word, but shook it off. He looked out the window; there was a dwarf priest.

"Yes," Sicco said slowly, "it is a dwarf."

"Dwarf," she repeated, more insistent this time, "What is dwarf?"

He was about to say that the dwarf was a dwarf, but stopped. Sicco took a moment to understand what she was asking.

"A priest. The dwarf is a priest."

"What he do?"

Sicco was confused at the question, but answered it nonetheless, "A priest carries the Light of faith with them, healing the wounded and purging evil. They follow the Light and serve as powerful practitioners of divine magic."

The gnome was amazed at the reaction to his little explanation. The girl was staring up at him with wonder, brimming with the joy of a toddler who had finally learned to say 'Daddy.'

"Priest! Priest!" She began shouting, and proceeded to run around the cell. Sicco quietly escaped the room with something new to add to the jumbled mess of his mind. He left the dungeon, not bothering to lock the doors on his way.

* * *

Later that same day, the little girl found the door to her cell unlocked. She cautiously opened it with a loud creaking noise. As she came out of the dungeon, she found that the air was thick with green, noxious gas. Somehow, she was unaffected by it.

Something off to the corner of her vision caught her eye. She turned to find a group of gnomes with all sorts of hair colors, running. They had expressions of terror on their faces, but none of them looked back.

The girl had never seen another gnome in her life, and so her first thought was of Sicco.

She ran over to the gnomes, and noted that one of them was a bit taller than the others. They did not seem to notice her, but the tall one nodded his head at her.

They continued sprinting through the winding metal tunnels of the city, some of the gnomes telling the big one to use his 'mechanostrider'. He argued back, saying, "I'm not leaving anyone behind!"

After a long time of running through the seemingly endless halls, the girl started to tire. She did not want to leave them, for fear of being left for whatever they were running from.

As she began to lag behind, the tall gnome went back and picked her up. He carried her the rest of the way.

* * *

When they finally reached the end of the winding tunnels, a golden light erupted upon the girl's face, temporarily blinding her. She could hear cheering, screaming, and sobbing. When her eyes got used to the bright light, she found a very large group of gnomes. They were cheering at the arrival of more gnomes, screaming in fear, and sobbing over lost ones. She was momentarily distracted by her breath, which was coming out in white puffs of frosty air. After a few failed attempts at trying to catch this new discovery, the girl realized she had no idea where she was.

A few gnomes tried to pull her into the throng, and horror clutched her heart as she was reminded of the many times she had tried to crawl away from Sicco's torture sessions. Scared and confused at what was happening, the young gnome attached herself to the leg of the gnome that carried her.

The big gnome looked down at her, and said, "I don't think I've ever seen you before. What's your name?"

The girl looked at him, puzzled. Name? What was a name?

Receiving no reply, the tall gnome introduced himself, "My name is Gelbin Mekkatorque."

The girl understood that: Sicco had mentioned him many times. Maybe she did know what a name was. Moreover, that brought up another question: Where was Sicco?

"Sicco? Where Sicco?"

A look mixed between anger and grief passed over Gelbin's face, and he shook his head, " Sicco Thermaplugg? I don't know. He's probably still inside Gnomeregan." Now it was his turn to be puzzled. "Why do you want to know?"

"Sicco my father."

"Your father? He never mentioned anything about having a daughter. Well, never mind that. Where is your mother?"

The girl looked up at him, and thought for a moment. Sicco had brought her mother to her sometimes, and had said she came from somewhere called the 'Twisting Nether'.

"Mother is in Twisting Nether!"

Gelbin blanched; that meant either she was either a warlock that died, or was banished from this world. Yet how could a little girl look so happy while she said these words?

He was about to ask another question, but more pressing matters came to mind: What about Gnomeregan? How many gnomes had survived? How many were lost? What would become of Sicco Thermaplugg?

And so, Gelbin left to find the answers to these questions, leaving the little girl to be taken care of by the able gnome survivors.

"Why, what have we here? Another survivor of the calamity," an old gnome came forward to give a hug, but the girl flinched away.

The gnome frowned, "Oh, no. Have you lost your loved ones, too? I'm sure one of the priests helping out can help cheer you up."

Priest! The girl's blue eyes lit up. There was a word she knew! She wanted to be a priest. Maybe this one would teach her to be one.

She was so excited, she began running around and looking around for anyone who might carry the Light of faith with them. She ran into many other gnomes and tripped over many feet before finding a dwarf among the sea of three-foot tall gnomes.

He was an old dwarf, but that did not make him any less admirable to the girl. He wore plain white wool robes with powerful symbols devoted to deities and healing, along with a necklace with a cross on it. He was bald, but had a fiery red beard just a tad longer than that of a usual dwarf. His pale green eyes searched across the crowd, trying to see if anyone needed any immediate help.

"Priest! Priest!" she shouted, jumping up and down, blue eyes glowing brightly with excitement.

The dwarf finally noticed her, and laughing, asked, "What is it? I've never seen a gnome so eager to see a priest before."

"I wanna be a priest!"

He laughed some more, "And I'm sure ye'll be a fine priest! But I can't help ya in your quest right now; I have to help all of these gnomes."

Instead of being crestfallen, the little gnome was delighted, "Can I help you?"

"Why, of course! Me name's Ergrim Stonefist. What's yers?"

"Stonefist?" The girl tilted her head, "Why would you be called Stonefist when you don't have fists of stone?" She thought for a moment. "I think my last name is Thermaplugg. I don't know any other name."

His beard shook with laughter. "Stonefist is just a name. Now I guess we'll just have to find ye a name then, huh?"

For the rest of the day, the tiny gnome learned how to make bandages, and watched as the priest did spells of healing.

0o0o0

They went to one of the small rooms of the Thunderbrew Distillery, now cluttered with sick and injured gnomes. The priest and little girl were taking care of a particular gnome with a liking for shiny things. He found a shiny sword he wanted to add to his collection, and just got a little too close for his liking. He did not pay much attention to the wound, and it was now infected from exposure of the gas in Gnomeregan. His arm had turned a sickly green, and had a rancid stench to match.

They had cut off all the flesh that had been impossible to heal and might have spread the infection to other parts of the body, and had cleaned it as best they could. Ergrim was just preparing a healing spell.

A bright light surrounded his hands, and lit up his face. The girl leaned forward to see it better. The light was truly mesmerizing, and it looked so pretty…

She was brought back from dreamland when the light suddenly fizzled out in the middle of the casting. She stared at it quizzically; that had never happened before.

"Hmm... I must not have enough mana to cast the spell," he was staring at his hands, wondering the same thing as she. He turned to her, "Maybe ye could help me?"

Without a word, she put her hands on his. The girl's eyes flashed bright blue. As soon as he said the first word of the incantation, it all went wrong.

The girl screamed, and some unknown force pushed her into the wall. An incredible pain flared in her hands, burning them. Ergrim gaped at his hands for a moment, his magic having betrayed him, before running over to see if he could help.

As quick as it had come, the pain left. She coddled her scorched hands, panting with sudden exhaustion.

Despite the pain, she smiled up at him. "Can we not do that again?"


	3. Escapist

Disclaimer: Ergrim, Nehios, Aquatic, and Mhaya are mine. Aquatic and Mhaya are my characters in the Warcraft game, Mhaya's personality is slightly based on my actual friend. (Right now in the chapter, Aqua and Mhaya are about level 6) (The holy place mentioned does not exist, it has only been created to help the story move along)

* * *

_**DEMON CHILD**_

**~Two For Tragedy ~ **

After a few weeks, the priest decided to take the girl to a holy place. He hoped that one of the priests who rarely came out might let the girl study their ways.

"Where are we going?"

Ergrim looked back at the little girl. She had tied her hair up in two little ponytails, but some of it still came down over her eyes. She had adopted dress similar to his; a dusty old white robe and a plain necklace with a small cross he had given her. She skipped merrily after him through the snow.

He had started to call her Aquatic, as he liked that name. He wanted to call her Aqua, but a local human did not like the idea of sharing a name with a gnome.

He smiled, "We're going to a church. It's where priests gather and train."

"So does this mean I can become a priest?"

"If the others allow it, yes."

Aquatic jumped for joy and ran around Ergrim until they arrived.

"We're here. This is it."

Aquatic stopped running around long enough to get a good look at the building. It was constructed of a white rock, and had beautiful symbols and figures carved into it. The windows looked black, but when she glimpsed the inside, gorgeous paintings of vibrant colors danced upon them. The scent of incense drifted out of the palace, curling around the two.

Ergrim continued up the steps, and the girl quickly caught up to him.

When they were nearly to the top, the priest turned to her and said, "I'm sorry, but I have to go in alone. I'll come back," he said hurriedly, seeing the crestfallen look on her face, "I'll come back with another priest. He will decide whether to let you become one of us or not."

With that, Aquatic lit up again.

Ergrim went inside, and after a few moments, came back out with a rather decrepit old man. She noticed a rather flashy gem-encrusted cross hanging from a string around his neck.

"Aquatic, I want you to meet Nehios. Nehios, this is Aquatic."

Aquatic just nodded, mumbling a barely audible 'hello.'

The old human squinted at her for a long moment, as if trying to see her, and after what seemed like half the day, he finally said, "I am glad to meet you."

Nehios turned to Ergrim, "What did you want me for, again? I can't seem to remember."

"I want to know if I can take on a gnome as my apprentice."

He smiled, "It depends on the gnome. Who is it you want to teach these holy ways to?"

Ergrim put a hand on Aquatic's shoulder, "This is the lass."

Nehios looked left, and then right. Finally, he looked forward. However, he was looking _past_ Aquatic. "Where? You keep speaking of a gnome priest, but I do not see one. Stop playing tricks on me!"

"I speak of a gnome who wants to become a priest. She's right 'ere," Ergrim clamped his hand down on Aquatic's shoulder again, harder this time.

The old man's fierce brown eyes shot up to the dwarf's, forcing the latter to take a step back, "I said, _I see no priest_. What I see before me is a blinded apprentice and a gnome who rejects the Light!"

The dwarf took another step back, and cast the poor little gnome a dejected look. "I… I did not know. I'm sorry fer wastin' yer time, and I am sorry for wastin' this gnome's time."

The man nodded sagely. "You should be."

Aquatic bowed her head low, and turned around to leave. Before she could, however, the old man snatched the cross away from her neck with a growl. She gasped, and ran a finger over her neck, feeling where the string had left an angry red line.

The man glared at her, never taking his furious eyes off her. She felt heartbroken.

She could just hear the word he hissed at her before she left. Even though he only said it once, that one word would echo throughout her life, and would slowly eat away at her.

"_Monster!"_

* * *

"There it is! The monster!"

Aquatic did not even glance at the two smaller-than-her gnomes as they whispered to each other from their hiding spot. What good would it do her? They would only become even more scared of her. Rather, she closed her eyes, trying to focus more on the sounds of the wind.

Nehios recently preached that there was an unholy creature in their midst, and many became suspicious and afraid of anything or anyone pertaining to that description. Considering Aquatic sudden appearance after the Gnomeregan incident, much of their focus was concentrated on her. The priest's words had spread through Dun Morogh quite quickly, and were continuing to spread to Stormwind. By then, the majority of the Alliance will have heard. Gelbin had been nice enough to let her stay in Dun Morogh, for the time.

The tormented gnome was currently lying on a small rocky cliff, wondering what she should do. She wanted to help others, but how could she do that when she could not be a priest? How could she do that when others hated her so much? Well, at least she found out that those 'unknown' words Sicco used to say to her were. She did not like the definitions.

"I wish I could show them I'm a good person, just like them." She whispered to the wind. She was not expecting an answer, and did not get one. Rather, she received a question.

"Then why don't you?"

She opened her eyes. Another gnome stood over her, blocking the sun. Aquatic could not see them against the glare of the aforementioned globe in the sky, but from their voice, they were female.

"Well?"

So abrupt was the question, Aquatic did not know how to answer it.

"Here, I'll help you." The mysterious gnome took her hand. With a bit of effort, she dragged her down to lower ground.

In a much preferable light, Aquatic could clearly see what her helper looked like. Long, strawberry-blond hair flowed down past her shoulders, and swayed across her plain purple robe. Her lightly freckled face portrayed no emotion, though her pale turquoise orbs flicked just about everywhere, curious. A leather sack was slung over her shoulder, bulging with numerous books. As if she did not have enough, a few smaller books were tucked under her arm. Aquatic wondered how she could carry those, as she was smaller than she was.

* * *

"Bink! Bink!"

The smaller gnome led the bigger gnome into Ironforge, and to the Mystic Ward. She was currently trying to get the attention of her mentor, another gnome with the name of Bink.

Bink turned around to her eccentric apprentice and asked, "Have you mastered casting a fireball yet, Mhaya?"

Mhaya cringed, "Uh, well…" she twiddled her fingers for a moment, coughing out a nervous laugh, before finally sighing in defeat. "Not yet."

Bink sighed, "Mhaya, you can't keep neglecting your fire studies like this. Oh! Who's your friend?"

At last, she had noticed Aquatic. She managed nervous smile, unsure if she would reject her as others seemed to be doing nowadays.

"I-I'm Aquatic."

Glad at the change of subject, Mhaya perked up. "She wants to learn how to be a mage!"

Her mentor's eyes did not stray from the quiet gnome, "Really? I guess I could take another apprentice, but I don't know…"

"She can help me concentrate on my fire and arcane studies more."

"Deal. Let me show you where you will be staying, Aquatic."

* * *

"And this is our room, which we'll be sharing!"

Mhaya had just finished showing Aquatic around the house they were to be staying at. It had started at the study, and ended at the bedroom. There was not much in between the two.

The bedroom was the only room that had many furnishings. There were several old bookcases, all practically bursting with ancient books. A dusty, unused fireplace was snuggled in the corner, and two moth-eaten feather beds roosted in another corner.

The strawberry-blond grabbed a much-thumbed book from the top of one of the bookcases, and flopped onto a bed. Aquatic followed her example, and grabbed a blue leather-bound volume with golden writing embossed on the cover.

Mhaya raised an eyebrow, "You're going to read that? I can't make heads nor tails of it."

The black hair shrugged and said jokingly, "I guess it would appropriate then, considering how I can't make heads nor tails of how I ended up training to become a mage."

"Sorry about that." She sighed, "I guess I have to explain now, right? Well, as Bink said, I was avoiding my fire studies. I had to find an excuse to get myself off the hook, and I found you. You seemed like the type to be a magic-user, and you didn't look like you already had a mentor."

"You used me as an excuse?"

"Hey, last time I _didn't_ find an excuse, I ended up running from a horde of quantum zombies!"

"Quantum zombies?"

"Err… Hey, look what I can do!"

Mhaya quickly began chanting an incantation and a magical aura gathered around her hands. Within seconds, two bottles of water occupied them. With a satisfied smirk she handed one to Aquatic, who could only stare in awe at the simple magic.

"How did you do that?"

"I focused some arcane magic into my hands and spoke the incantation." Mhaya took a sip from her drink and shrugged. "Simple as that."

Aquatic's eyes widened. "Magic is really that simple?"

"Some magic, when you practice a lot. But when you get into the harder magic, like summoning, portals, shadow-based magic and the like, it gets really complicated."

"Shadow magic? What's that?"

Mhaya shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure, but it's a kind of dark magic warlocks use. It can torture the soul, twist the mind, and even send someone into the Twisting Nether itself."

Aquatic stared at her new friend. "Really?"

"Yeah, although I'm not too sure about the Twisting Nether part." She grimaced. "Bink doesn't even want me talking about it. She says that even talking about it will make you crazy."

Ignoring the other gnome's amazed expression, she went back to her book. Aquatic followed suit.

Her eyes widened as she realized the blue leather book she had been holding had disappeared, and now a sickly green tome lay in her hands. She found it difficult to figure out what it was made of, as it was very coarse, albeit sticky in a few spots.

A set of runes were burned into the cover, and smelled faintly of sulfur. Aquatic had never seen the runes before, yet somehow she could understand them perfectly. She read the title: _Fel._

She opened to the first page, and her eyebrows rose as more runes skittered across the page, each blazing with their own amethyst glow.

**I.**

_Demon magic is most commonly known as 'fel magic'. This energy is arcane magic in its most corrupt form, for it employs the use of the blood of demons. These spells are most powerful and almost futile to try to resist. This magic can also affect the caster. Their side effects are almost irreversible, and to not succumb to it is quite the feat. The spells are spoken in the language of the Demon, Eredun, and the words themselves have a magical property. Any who hear the language could easily fall into madness, and any who speaking it would have double the chance of doing so. The rare few who can avoid this tragedy are either very skilled arcanists or demons themselves. To use the magic without inconvenience, arcanists wishing to delve into this class of magic usually keep a summoned demon around them, although there are those who combine demon blood with their own. _

Aquatic shut the book with a _thump_, scattering dust. The contents of the tome scared her, however at the same time, intrigued her. She looked over to her right to see the other gnome asleep, book cradled against her cheek.

Gingerly as to not wake her, she set the book on the floor and nestled into bed. Sleep did not come quickly for her, for she was wide-awake and still full of energy. Yet it came, gleefully swallowing her up into darkness.

* * *

Just a note: since Aquatic was locked up away from everything, she has never seen a book or writing before. Why she can read _Fel_ will be revealed later on in the story.


	4. Planet Hell

_No moon hung in the sky that night; no stars graced the air. The sky was a dark red, the land even redder._

_Hundreds of thousands of corpses littered the ground, leaking blood in to the already sodden ground. Bones protruded from their bodies; limbs torn from their torso. Their eyes widened with unimaginable horror; their faces depicting terrifying expressions._

_Black clouds swirled overhead, hiding any coldhearted god that may have been watching._

_These images tormented a kind, caring soul._

_She did not know why she was being shown this, only that these people were either dead, or dying._

_She tried in vain to help them, yet each touch caused the dying to scream out in pain. The living began to decay, leaving their skulls to continue howling even as she started to cry. The girl had no way to remedy this, and only increased their suffering._

_Those still able to see shrieked when she came near, pleading her not to come closer._

_The Light hid from her when she came near, abandoning its loyal warriors to die in agony._

_As she came upon a dying paladin, he cried just as the others did. The girl knelt down to tend to his wounds, but as soon as her hand came in contact with his skin, the warrior of good disintegrated._

_Her shaking hand slowly scooped up the ashes, letting them fall through her shaking fingers. A crystalline tear fell on the burnt remains, and even in that, evil was present._

_Demons danced in that tear, laughing and screaming with delight. She wiped it away in horror, as well as any more from her eyes._

_The girl stood up, scared and afraid of all that was happening. __She surveyed the devastation surrounding her, and screamed._

* * *

"Aquatic! Aquatic!"

Aquatic woke up with a start from her startling dream, sitting up and nearly knocking her head into someone else's.

"Aquatic!"

"What?" She snapped at whoever woke her up, her voice filled with malice, "Couldn't you see that I was asleep? I should lash you for waking me up!"

Mhaya was stunned; what happened to the timid little gnome from yesterday? "Aquatic! You were screaming. I had to wake you."

Aquatic could barely hear her. She was wondering what had made her say those harsh words. She had never felt such hatred, such malice towards all things living. The feeling horrified her.

"-waiting for us."

She stared at Mhaya, coming out of her reverie. "What?"

"I said, we should go down to the study. Bink will probably be waiting for us."

"Oh."

"Yeah, now come on. Oh, I almost forgot!" She dived beneath her bed, and just when Aquatic was sure she had a bottomless hole down there, she came back up.

The strawberry-head tossed her a bundle of cloth, which turned out to be a purple robe similar to the one she was wearing.

"Mage apprentices are expected to wear certain color robes during their first few years of training," Mhaya told her, departing down some stairs to the study.

With a shrug, Aquatic pulled it over her old white robe, and followed her downstairs. The dream was already fading from memory.

A warm, spicy smell wafted up to greet Aquatic on her descent down the stairs. She inhaled it deeply, and wondered where it was coming from. Her hungry eyes scanned the room twice before finally finding the source. The table!

In the middle of the table was a stack of spice bread. Mhaya was there, a slice occupying one of her hands, while her book occupied the other. She was forever at her studies. Bink stood over to the side, leaning over a scroll that looked as if it would fall apart if anyone were to touch it.

Mhaya finally noticed Aquatic, and handed her a slice of the bread. "Here. It's breakfast."

"Breakfast," Aquatic repeated, tasting the foreign word on her tongue. The word was like heaven to her right then. She stared at the bread for a few seconds before copying what the others were doing. She took a bite of it.

The bread was delicious, but when she swallowed, it awoke something terrible. It awoke an immense hunger, one that had been empty for many years, one that craved food. For what must have been the first time in her life, Aquatic was hungry.

Aquatic liked the bread, and so she complied with her stomach's command and ate. She ate the rest of her bread, the bread on the table, and even the bread Mhaya was eating. The blonde-haired gnome did not mind. She was too engrossed in her book to notice, anyway.

"You sure are hungry," Bink joked, "What have they been feeding you there? Bones?"

Aquatic did not answer the rhetorical question. She was too busy trying to eat the plate.

"Ready for some training, you two?" Bink asked.

"Yeah!" Mhaya cheered. Aquatic appeared to have bitten a chunk off the clay plate. She seemed to be enjoying it. The smallest of the three watched her.

"…do you think I could have some of that?"

Aquatic's head swiveled around to glare at her with frightening glowing orbs. She growled.

"Do you want to learn or not?" Bink snapped. The young gnomes immediately stood as straight and stiff as boards.

Bink flicked a stray strand of white hair out of her face. "I was thinking we could see how much magical potential you have, Aquatic. And see how dedicated you are." She narrowed her eyes at Mhaya at this last remark, who tried to shrink into a corner.

Bink headed toward the door. "Come on! Put down the plate, I can't teach you in here."

Aquatic looked questioningly at Mhaya. She just shrugged and headed after her trainer. Aquatic followed along.

* * *

"Mhaya, practice your Fire Blast. Aquatic, let's see how much magical capability you have."

Mhaya only nodded her head, her teeth chattering too much for her to protest. Aquatic had been playing with the 'magical sparkly puffs' coming from her breath, but she instantly snapped to attention when she heard her name.

Bink continued as Mhaya went off to find a defenseless bunny, "I'm going to cast a spell on you that will affect your magic. It won't harm you, though it will give your mind the illusion that it is and that you must be protected. Your magic will instinctively try to protect you. Based on the shield you conjure we can gauge how powerful you are."

Aquatic slowly nodded. She wondered if magic hurt.

The mage brought out a handful of dust from one of her pouches and raised her hands slightly. She started to say something, but paused.

"Ready?"

Aquatic nodded again. What else could she do?

Bink nodded as well. She mumbled a few words under her breath, and threw the dust toward Aquatic.

The girl braced herself. For what, she had no clue. She really had no idea of what would happen, although Bink already explained it to her.

Before the dust even made contact with her skin, something stirred within her. Words bubbled up through her throat. Aquatic started to chant and her eyes glowed.

But the words burned. They slid like a fire over her tongue. Aquatic choked on them, interrupting the chant. Her eyes flickered.

She fell to the ground, her lungs convulsing wildly as her body tried desperately to rid itself of the vile words.

Bink gaped. This had never happened before! As worried for Aquatic as she was, she couldn't stop herself from being fascinated with her reaction. She shook her head furiously and ran to Aquatic.

As Bink neared Aquatic, the intended reaction of the spell finally kicked in. A black shield enveloped the now trembling girl and sent out a wave of strong magic that knocked Bink back several feet.

Tears slid down from Aquatic's wide blue eyes. Hands instantly went up to wipe them away; the shield wavered. Nevertheless, the words continued.

She started hyperventilating. The words came out stuttered; her hands twitched. Finally she lurched forward, vomiting the spice bread and the remains of the plate from earlier.

The words stopped. The shield flickered once, twice, and was gone. The light from her eyes faded.

She collapsed.

* * *

If you don't get the "she wondered if magic hurt" bit, think about it. She's been isolated for years, and has next to no knowledge on magic. She's only heard it mentioned a few times. Get it now?

It's been a while since I last posted, hasn't it? NaNoWriMo has encouraged me to write even more, so expect me to update (a bit) more frequently. My long neglected stories will also get some new additions.


	5. The Riddler

**Withering Daisy** _-Chapter 5_

A quill scratched along the dry ridges of parchment behind the pitter-patter of small feet pacing in worry. The scratching stopped, the writer reaching across the desk. Sand rained down on the wet ink, followed by a gentle breath of frigid air. A crisp page turned, a quill dabbed in an ink well, the scratching continued.

The scratching echoed through the room, a lone sound. A soft weight lifted, and a speck of water splashed astray from its siblings, which gathered in a clay bowl. The soft weight returned, yet was noticabley colder than before. A drop of water streamed down from the weight over her face. Her eye twitched in annoyance.

The movement did not go unnoticed. A quick gasp from someone nearby told her as much.

"Bink! She's starting to wake up!"

The scratching did not stop immediately. It paused for a slight moment, but went on for a few more seconds before the writer sprinkled sand over the words. The chair creaked as it moved away from the desk, and then again as it was set back in place.

"Let me take a look at her."

Aquatic felt two bodies move close to her as the floorboards groaned. Someone held their hands to her mouth; Bink, maybe? Aquatic could only guess that she was checking to make sure she was breathing. She didn't understand that. If she was moving, wouldn't that mean she was breathing, since no one can move and not be breathing. ...could they?

Bink lifted the soft weight from her forehead, and laid the back of her hand of her head. There was a pause, then the other hand. She could hear Bink purse her lips; in frustration? In impatience? In confusion?

Aquatic blinked open one eye, then the next. Immediately, Mhaya leaned so close to her face she could only see a blur of color. Aquatic shut her eyes against the sting.

"Mhaya." Bink pulled Mhaya away from Aquatic, a scowl clear on her face.

"Aquatic," Bink started, sliding on to the end f the bed, as if settling down to prepare for a long explanation. Instead, a question. "Do you remember anything from earlier?"

Aquatic thought back to that day's events. Bink took Mhaya and her outside, Bink wanted to know how much magic she had, then she threw sparkly dust at her, and then...

"After you threw the sparkles at me, I just felt...angry. It was horrible. It hurt so much. Something made me say those weird words, I don't know what, but they hurt. They were like...splinters."

Aquatic shook. Remembering the pain of a few hours earlier had awakened the pain and fear of all her years in solitude. She played with the fringe of the bed sheet to take her mind off it.

"I tried to stop the words, to stop the pain. Then I think it all went dark. Then I woke up here."

She looked up at Bink, and was surprised to see her scratching away in a leather journal.

Bink got up from the bed and walked over to the desk. She grabbed a pinch of sand from a jar and sprinkled it over the page. She chanted a few words, and a small cone of frost fell over the ink, drying it.

She left with the journal, but without a word.

* * *

I can't think of where to go with this story next. Should I do a time skip a few years?


	6. Bye Bye Beautiful

Disclaimer: I don't own World of Warcraft. The changes Cataclysm has brought will be implemented when I manage to implement Deathwing into the story line. So until then, It's Wrath of the Lich King time period. Spells and all that from Cata will be in this story, just not Deathwing, geographical changes, or Cata role-play plot will be present until I deem the story ready.

**NOTE: The time skip has been implemented. I don't know the exact number of years that have passed. **

Withering Daisy 6

Mhaya blinked open her eyes to a new day before she realized two voices were having a conversation in the room. She decided that interrupting would be very rude.

"So how did I do?"

Mhaya could hear the excitement in her roommate's voice. But what was she asking about-oh, yes! They recieved the results of their tests today! The two budding mages had always recieved their reports separately, and were forbidden from telling the other their individual results. Mhaya raised the bed covers up to her nose, as if the other two in the room might see her wicked grin.

"Well, there's good news and bad news." This voice sounded troubled. Mhaya quirked an eyebrow under her covers. She had always been talked to by one of the apprentices of Kirin Tor. So why Bink?

"Which do you want first?"

"The good news!"

"The good news is that you answered every question on the history part correctly, and you passed the spell memorization part flawlessly. The mages of Kirin Tor were most impressed."

Mhaya waited for the praises of how well she did on the third part of the test and how the archmages wanted to make Aquatic their apprentice. However, there was instead a long pause.

"And the bad news." Mhaya almost didn't recognize Aquatic's voice; she rarely used such a lifeless tone.

"You failed to complete any of the spells they told you to cast."

Later that day, Mhaya and Aquatic practiced casting spells at training dummies made of wood.

Mhaya talked to an apprentice with her report only minutes ago, so she was still thinking about that. She somehow managed to juggle her thoughts and the spells without much trouble.

While thinking about how she could fit in more study time during lessons with Bink and still pay attention, Mhaya noticed a wide gap between the amount of spells she cast and the dictionary of sailor curses coming from her companion.

Mhaya gaped, astounded into silence by the scene. After a few minutes she found her voice.

"A-Aquatic?"

Said girl looked at her, blinked innocently, and replied, "Yes?"

"Is everything alright?"

"I guess so, but it's just that... Well, I can't seem to cast this spell correctly." She looked at her burnt and frostbitten hands. "Or any of them."

"Why not?"

"I'm not sure. I know the incantation, I know the level of concentration required, I know the hand gestures, but I can't put them all together."

"Then try casting the spell again and I'll tell you what's wrong."

Aquatic smiled and agreed enthusiastically. She loved magic, and would do anything for it.

While Aquatic chanted the incantation, Mhaya mouthed the words simulataneusly. She felt the arcane power gathering toward Aquatic, the bulk of it focusing around her hands. Even at the distance she was, she felt the heat of the magic as it manifested into an element. Mhaya silently wondered why the mages of Kirin Tor wouldn't help her when they could have all of this power at their disposal.

Then Mhaya found the problem. Aquatic suddenly changed the direction of the incantation, chanting what almost seemed to be gibberish-jagged, backwards fragments of the arcane language nearly undecipherable swamped in a throaty, slithering accent.

Mhaya could feel the voice working its way into her mind, trying to twist her to its command. She clamped her hands over her ears.

The sound stopped.

The frightened gnome took her hands away from her head, seeing as Aquatic had ceased all efforts to continue the spell.

She quirked her eyebrow at the panting apprentice.

"It seems like you don't know the words."

Aquatic raised an eyebrow right back. "What do you mean? I know the words, it's just that those extra words keep appearing."

Mhaya shook her head. "You don't know the incantation. If you did, those odd words wouldn't pop up."

"Okay, say I don't know the words. Why do those other words keep appearing? Why don't I simply stop, or begin a different spell?"

"Maybe your brain knows that words are supposed to be there, but it doesn't know them, so it's replacing the rest with other words from your memory."

"But I've never heard those words before. And they felt like magic. Really powerful magic."

"Then you might have read them in a book somewhere. And maybe that magic is your own."

Aquatic appeared awed, marveling at her magic-ravaged hands. "My magic is that powerful? That's kind of scary, considering I don't even know how to use it."

She turned her head to glare at Mhaya. "However, I know the incantation."

Mhaya chuckled at her friend's stubborness.

"I do!" Aquatic proceeded to say the entire incantation, keeping her hands tucked behind her back.

"So you do. But that doesn't explain why you can't cast the spell."

"Well, it doesn't turn normal if I complete the spell, if you're wondering about that."

"Then what does it do?"

"The words hurt, and if I keep going, the pain increases with every word. The training dummy went up in flames for a second, then it was like the fire slowly engulfed it from the inside."

Mhaya thought about it for a moment, then said, "Maybe you're just not gathering the proper element of magic."

"You mean that I might be gathering a a different form of arcane energy than the one required for the spell?" Aquatic gasped. "And that it's somehow mutating the spell?"

"Yep."

"We need to test this theory. I'll cast the spell a few times and you can check the arcane energy around me."

Mhaya nodded, and Aquatic cast the spells. She didn't find anything wrong with the spells up until the last few words where Aquatic cut off.

Mhaya gasped as she realized what kind of magic the spells turned into.

"What is it? Do you know why I can't cast spells?"

"Your...Your magic... It's fel magic."

"F-fel?" Aquatic paled.

Tears sprung from her eyes, and she looked at Mhaya. "Does this mean I won't be able to be a mage?"

"I'm sure Bink will be able to find a solution for you."

* * *

If you haven't already noticed, take a look at the chapter titles. I'm bad at thinking of titles, so I choose a title of a Nightwish song that sounds like it fits the chapter of my story. I only do this for this story. The other stories have funny chapter titles.


	7. Wishmaster

The long-awaited (or maybe not so long) chapter 7 is here! The writing quality isn't very good, as was chapter 6, but it'll be better next chapter! I promise!  
Note: The book paragraphs are copied directly from WoW Wiki. The priest description is a combination of the first description in chapter 1 and something from Wikipedia.

* * *

**Withering Daisy** _-Chapter 7_

"What do you mean you already knew about this? We only learned about it half an hour ago!"

Bink continued reading her book, calmly replying, "I consider it my business when one of my students appears to be failing."

Mhaya clearly didn't expect that response, so Aquatic decided to speak. "If you knew I couldn't cast spells, then why did you let me continue my studies?"

The mage trainer turned a page. "It's your dream to be a mage. If you wished to continue training, then I had no right to hinder your learning by refusing to teach you. What you decide to do now is completely your decision."

"Why isn't she learning a different class?" Mhaya wondered.

"There are other classes?"

Mhaya stared at Aquatic.

"Standards in Dalaran must be dropping."

"Mhaya!" Bink scowled at her, expecting better from her first student.

Mhaya grinned, proud of the joke even if her mentor wasn't.

Aquatic glanced back and forth between the two, wondering what they were talking about.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry, Aquatic," Mhaya said with a voice that anyone could tell was unsincere. Aquatic's mind stayed pondering on the joke.

"Anyway," Bink said, trying to get back on track. "The thought that Aquatic hasn't tried other classes never came to me. She never said anything."

Mhaya looked at Aquatic. "Do you want to try other classes?"

Aquatic shrugged, still confused on the subject of classes.

"Then wait here." Mhaya ran up the stairs. Sounds of heavy books flying across the room and landing on the floor soon followed. Bink visibly winced.

"Found it!"

Mhaya came running down the stairs, almost tripping over the steps. High above her head she held a relatively new book.

"What is it?"

Mhaya set it on the table, revealing the title to be Classes of Azeroth.

"It gives a brief description of every class available and instructions on how to do a basic ability. With this, you can try out each class and see if you want to train to become one of them."

Mhaya opened the book and checked the table of contents before flipping to another page.

"The book lists in the classes in a random order, starting with priest." She scowled. "It was probably in alphabetical order in the original language, yet the translator didn't bother to fix that."

Aquatic trembled slightly at the mere mention of the class, unpleasent memories rising to the surface. She slid in to a chair as her knees started buckling. Almost immediately, she tried to move her mind from the sadness attached to the memory. "I wanted to be a priest once, before I met you."

"Really? What happened?"

Aquatic shrugged off the question, saying, "I moved on."

"All the same, do you want to hear about it and try some spells?"

Trying to somehow prove her last statement true, Aquatic nodded.

"'_The priest carries the Holy Light, restoring his wounded allies, shielding them in battle and even resurrecting his fallen comrades from death. The priest can also wreak terrible vengeance on his enemies, using the grand powers of the Holy Light to smite and purge them_.'"

Mhaya paused, reading a few other paragraphs silently. Then she slid the book over to Aquatic.

"It has instructions for the spell Smite."

Mhaya set up the practice dummy while Aquatic went over the incantation.

"Ready!"

Aquatic made sure a good measure of space separated the dummy and her, then launched into chanting, gathering magical energy.

The spell stayed without fel magic longer than halfway; it lasted up to the very end. As Aquatic let the last word roll off her tongue, a flash of light enveloped the room and her chanting quickly became screams of pain.

A powerful force threw Aquatic to the wall, stifling her screams. The pain in her hands became too unbearable and she started hyperventilating. Memories resurfaced, and she soon began screaming again.

Someone ran toward her, yelling out a spell. Her hands stopped burning as something cool washed over them.

Aquatic managed to bring herself back to reality and see that Bink had come to her rescue, chanting from a book to make water stream from the tip of her wand.

"Thank you," Aquatic said after the pain from her hands and head had ebbed away.

Bink ceased chanting, and told Mhaya, who was still trying to adjust her eyes from the flash of light, to fill a bowl with water.

Aquatic stared at her hands. The remnants of the spell left a harsher red than the one with Ergrim.

Mhaya came back with the water and set it by Aquatic, who slowly put her hands in, wincing slightly as the burns came in contact with the cold.

Minutes passed before anyone said anything.

"Aquatic, go to your room and rest. I believe that you've had enough-"

"No."

Bink stared at Aquatic, almost glaring from being defied by one of her own students. "What?"

Aquatic dried her hands with a cloth, her mind set. "This is nothing. I'll find a class that I can cast spells from. So, what class is next?"

Mhaya frowned. "Druid. But-"

Aquatic was already at the book, reading. "'_Druids are keepers of the world who walk the path of nature, following the wisdom of the Ancients and Cenarius, healing and nurturing the world. To a druid, nature is a delicate balance of actions, in which even the smallest imbalance can create storming turmoil from peaceful skies. Druids draw their power from this wild energy, using it to change their shapes and command the forces of nature_.' Alright, I'll try casting Wrath."

Before either gnome mage could inject her own opinion, Aquatic started casting. No energy gathered in her hands, so she tried a second time, with the same result.

"No? Maybe I'm more inclined toward physical melee." She ran back to the book, slamming her hands down on the table. Aquatic ignored the pain, although the other two gnomes winced.

"'_The warrior_,'" she began, reading aloud as if Bink or Mhaya had asked her to, "'_is no mere sword-swinger; they are skilled combatants, combining strength of arm, knowledge of weaponry and practiced maneuvers to slice or bludgeon their foes into little red bits. The warrior is the most versatile of the combat classes, and they supplement their fighting prowess with the ability to rally their allies and spur them to victory, but not only can they rally their allies into victory; they can themselves charge into the heart of the battle, take several lives and live to tell the tale_.'"

Aquatic read on silently, then chuckled.

"Heroic Strike. Fancy name for a simple sword strike. Now, I'm sure there must be a sword around here somewhere."

Sure enough, Aquatic found a shortsword under one of the bookcases. She swung it around and succeeded in knocking herself over.

Raising herself off the chair she fell on, she said, "Maybe a different weapon."

Digging under bookcases, Aquatic found several different weapons. Only with one of them did she not fall over: a dagger. She pouted.

"Warriors don't use daggers. But maybe another melee class does."

As Aquatic flipped through the book, Bink asked, "Why do we have all of these weapons lying around?"

Mhaya answered, "The blacksmith in the Military Ward let me have them so I could practice my enchanting."

Before Bink could say anything to approve or disprove her pupil's actions, Aquatic cried out, "A rogue! '_The rogues of Azeroth are the masters of subterfuge, skilled and cunning adversaries of those who dare not look into the shadows to see what lurks there. Roguery is a profession for those who seek the adventures of stalking and silent forests, dimly lit halls and heavily guarded strongholds_.'"

Her face fell. "That...sounds scary, not to mention dangerous. Maybe I'm not suited to be a rogue. Maybe something else."

She flipped through more pages. "A hunter! Wait, no. It says gnomes can't be hunters."

Aquatic's page turning hastened after a few minutes, and quickly turned hysteric.

Perhaps sensing her companions' wondering stares, she said, "There's no more classes except for warlock." She shuddered. "I don't want to be a warlock. Is there any other way I could cast mage spells?"

Bink shook her head.

Aquatic sighed, and dragged herself up the stairs, finally yielding to Bink's request.

* * *

Extra: Later at midnight~

"Oh, now I get it! That wasn't very nice, Mhaya."

"Shut up, I'm trying to sleep."

"It was very rude and insulting to my intelligence, even more so since-"

A loud _thwack_ was heard as book connected with skull. A _thump_ soon followed.

* * *

So now I guess you know how Aquatic was able to be so happy and innocent and annoyingly naive immediately after the 8 years of torture; she simply locked away all of the memories and emotions.

Next chapter: A new character will be introduced. And that's it. Seriously, that's it. The action and major plot point comes up in chapter 9. Chapter 9 or 10 is where you find out how I patched up a boatload of obvious plotholes and how I made a bunch of previous foreshadowing (that was previously not supposed to be foreshadowing, yet it somehow came out that way) make sense.


	8. Whoever Brings The Night

Disclaimer: I do not own Warcraft. Tharsouris is not a real canon character or one of my playable characters. He's an imaginary construct courtesy of my friend, Mike.

* * *

**Withering Daisy** _-Chapter 8_

The Deeprun Tram was the most common form of transportation between Stormwind and Ironforge, and there were few who would prefer the more expensive gryphon flights.

Tharsouris was one of those few.

He stepped off the tram, his legs shaking as he slowly made his way to the portal. He raised a hand to help steady himself, and silently went over the Shadow Bolt spell. The only sound his long elfin ears could hear was his own heart beating furiously after the ride. The wolf by his side whined, and brushed affectionately against his master's pale skin. It was normally a more reddish color, but currently had a greenish tint to it.

If Tharsouris had been a full night elf, he would be restricted to being a hunter, but alas, that was not the case. His father had been a blood elf, making him a crossbreed of the two bloods. His mage calling had finally revealed itself one night, and he had all but abandoned his dream of becoming a hunter. However, his forever-loyal companion from that era stood ever by his side.

Tharsouris stepped through the dimensional-portal that he had no idea why it was there, and immediately found himself surrounded by numerous armed gnomes.

One of the tiny creatures came forward, "Halt, Horde scum! This is Alliance territory! Turn back now and you may be spared!"

Tharsouris sighed; did he have to go through this every time he came by tram? Moreover, what was with the 'turn back?' If he turned back, he would end up in Stormwind, where he would avoid being stabbed while frantically trying to explain that he was not part of the Horde.

The gnome that spoke sneered at him. "Well? Are you going to turn back, or do we get to stain our blades with elf blood?"

The elf said nothing. The wolf growled beside him.

The gnome closed his eyes and swung his sword, expecting metal to meet flesh. Instead, metal met air. He opened his eyes, and saw nothing but air and the shocked faces of his comrades. Laughter came from behind him, and he swiveled around to see the elf. He was rolling on the floor, laughing so hard his breathing came in loud gasps. The wolf rolled along with him, a choked growl -the gnome suspected it was laughter- coming from it.

The gnome sputtered, "W-wha, h-h-how- What's so funny!"

"Even though I hate the delay and how we go through this every time, your response makes it worthwhile," Tharsouris replied, wiping a tear from his eyes. He stood, and resumed a more dignified stature.

He looked down at the gnomes, shaking his head, smiling. "Wow. Even after I do it a dozen times, you still look amazed as ever when the elf hunter Blinks behind you."  
Still smiling, he turned and headed north.

* * *

Next chapter: I'll jump straight to a major plot point and Aquatic's life will take a turn completely for the worst with a life-and-death situation.

Note: I am merciless when it comes to killing my characters.


	9. She Is My Sin

Disclaimer: I tried my hardest on this chapter. I finally got to some conflict! Yay!

* * *

**Withering Daisy** _-Chapter 9_

Aquatic woke up to a sudden, sharp pain on her cheek. She brought her hand to it and felt something wet. She opened her eyes. Trying to blink away the dark, she saw a smear of black.

A flash of light caught her attention, illuminating her hand for a moment. The slick liquid reflected a dark red hue.

She turned her gaze to the light to see a sinister face glaring at her. His chest heaved and sweat glistened on his face. The greasy mess that was his beard hung like lichen.

Light bathed his face and Aquatic's heart stopped cold in her chest. Sweat mixed with tears as each streamed down his face to soak his red beard. His forehead creased and he squinted his eyes as in concentration.

He brought down a dagger glowing bright red and hit the mattress, as if purposely trying not to hit her.

He striked again, hitting her pillow. The next strike nicked her arm, sending a flare of pain. Something woke up in Aquatic, demanding she fight back, use magic. Too much in shock to do much of anything else, Aquatic gave in, reaching for the information in her mind that would let her cast a Fireball.

She started incanting and almost immediately tripped over a word, making the spell useless. Her mind refused to stray from the issue over the attacker.

Her next few tries failed. After she barely avoided the dagger cutting her hand a great dark orb flew from her hands.

It vanished when it came in contact with the attacker's robe. Almost immediately, the attacker fell forward, dropping the dagger to the floorboards. At first, Aquatic thought he was still trying to attack her and she panicked, but soon realized he had stopped moving.

Realization dawned on Aquatic. Shaking, she placed her hand on the attacker's wrist. She forced her hand to stop trembling, and waited. Mhaya's soft breathing seemed to multiply in volume.

Nothing. Aquatic checked his neck, with the same result. She even put her ear to his chest, resisting the urge to bury her face in his robe and say,"I missed you." No pulse.

Aquatic choked back tears and told herself to accept the truth of this night: Ergrim Stonefist was dead, and she killed him.

It kept repeating itself in her head, as if mocking her. _You killed Ergrim. Ergrim, your first friend. Ergrim, that dwarf you used to look up to. Ergrim, the carrier of the Light you always loved. You're responsible for his death. This is your fault._

Aquatic sobbed. Tears streamed down her face, stinging her cut even more than it already had.

_You killed Ergrim. You killed your friend. You killed what you always wanted to be._

"No!" Aquatic screamed, burying her head in Ergrim's soft robe, not liking this truth. "No, no, no, no!"

_You brought this upon yourself._

Someone roughly pulled her away from Ergrim. Aquatic's eyes grew wide and she clung to the robe desperately. The other other person eventually won, but Aquatic tore a piece of the robe off. Her trembling fingers refused to be pried from the scrap of memory.

Through her tears, Aquatic could see Mhaya had pulled her away and Bink was checking for Ergrim's pulse.

Seeing Aquatic, Bink went over to her. She asked them both if they were okay, then told them to wait downstairs.

Aquatic stared at the table, having barely noticed Mhaya lead her down the stairs from her shock.

"I know Bink doesn't let you have food or drink, arcane knows why, but I think this is an exception."

Something warm pressed into her hands.

"Drink it slowly," Mhaya cautioned, taking a small sip of hers as if to demonstrate.

Aquatic watched the steam rise and dissapate gradually as it rose above the cup. Tears sprang from her eyes as she took a slow sip of her drink. A warmth slowly spread through her, but she also became painfully aware of a gnawing hunger in her stomach.

Bink came down, her eyes far away, focused elsewhere.

"Aquatic, did you-" She stopped short when she noticed the drinks. She took a mug and emptied the drink in a potted plant, then returned the empty mug to Aquatic. She scowled at Mhaya.

"Seeing as you're the one who woke us, Aquatic, did you see what happened?"

Aquatic stared sadly at her mug. "He tried to kill me, so I cast a spell."

"Self-defense. Even though it's great you finally cast a successful spell, I'll have to tell King Bronzebeard about this."

Bink looked at the two, worry etched on her face.

"You two will have to stay somewhere else for a few days while this is all sorted out. Preferably somewhere protected with strong spells with an experienced mage to look after you."

A small burst of arcane light filled part of the room for a fraction of a second. A tall figure appeared, head bowed. His arms clearly tried to show off some kind of grandeur, resulting in a rather ridiculous pose.

He lifted his head, and in a silky voice, said, "I'm sorry ladies, but I was out on a stroll when I happened to overhear your predicament and thought I could be of service."

* * *

I kinda wanted to end it at where Aquatic killed Ergrim, but decided the chapter would be too short if I did that. I finished the rest of the scene and brought them downstairs. It's still to short.

Bink is plotting something...

...and that means I'll have to develop whatever the heck grew from those little sentences I wrote simply to add words. That's going to be hard. I don't have a green thumb.


	10. Bare Grace Misery

**Cherish My Loving Curse **

"You were eavesdropping, you mean." Bink scowled.

"I could have said that, but them you'd be at my throat with spells, questioning me. Now who are these two?" He changed the subject before Bink could berate him more.

"Hello, Tharsouris!" Mhaya jumped up and hugged the man.

He lifted her up and turned in a circle, his robe swirling in a flamboyant manner around him. He set her back down and stared at her, at eye level, pursing his lips in deep thought. She giggled. The man straightened up and pointed an accusing finger at her.

"Ah-ha! You're Mhaya! I recognize that giggle anywhere. My, how you've grown!"

Mhaya hugged him again. "And you don't look like you've changed a bit."

"That's elven blood for you. Now who's this other girl?" He looked to the table, but no one sat there.

"Where did she go?"

"You're tall," said an awed voice.

Tharsouris swiveled around, but still saw nothing. He looked down, and saw a pair of blue eyes the size of saucers staring up at him.

"Yes, elves are naturally tall. Just like how gnomes are naturally short."

Mhaya stepped beside Aquatic. "Tharsouris, this is Aquatic. Aquatic, this is Tharsouris."

"Odd name," Tharsouris commented. He turned back to Bink before Aquatic could comment on his own name.

"I came with a reason other than to offer help. Why-"

"Did you now," Bink drawled.

Tharsouris glared a moment before continuing in a low voice. "Why was a Shadow Bolt cast here a few minutes before I arrived?"

That seemed to strike a cord in Bink. She turned sharply toward Mhaya and Aquatic, her voice suddenly strict. "Go in my study and read."

Mhaya took Aquatic's hand and coaxed her to a room stuffed with books. She shut the door behind them, and handed the grief-stricken girl a book.

"As I was saying-"

"Hold that thought."

Tharsouris could feel a headache coming, but ignored it. He had business to conduct. At least I let the other person finish their sentence, he couldn't help but think.

Once Bink finished chanting her spell, she said, "One of my students cast it in self-defense."

Tharsouris frowned. "Why a warlock spell and not a mage spell?"

"She didn't think. She was in danger, so her first thought was of something else dangerous."

The frown stayed firmly in placed, now being tapped by two fingers.

"That doesn't explain how she knew the spell in the first place."

"She found a book."

Tharsouris nodded, seeing through the lie. Bink wouldn't let any book containing shadow spells near her dwelling. _What are you hiding?_

Tharsouris held the question in check, instead opting for another: "And what's this about a a place to sleep?"

"One of my students was attacked by an unknown assailment."

"The same one who cast the Shadow Bolt?"

Ever the one with the knowledge of chopping sentences, Bink answered, "Yes."

"Seeing as there are no mages stronger than you in the city able to take care of two children, I suppose the duty falls to me."

Bink spluttered, "What? No mages? None at all?"

"Most are deep in studying magic from foreign lands, and the rest are either too frail or are out of commission for the time being."

"There must be someone else."

"None."

"Then I'll watch them."

"Very well, I'll let you juggle two energic gnomes, the investigation, and your studies. My, you'll barely have time to cook a a suitable meal for yourself and a couple of growing gnomes."

Bink hesitated, but finally yielded. Annoyance clear on her face, Bink chanted the spells that would lower the spell.

Bink ended the conversation with a warning. "I don't want you corrupting them."

Yet Tharsouris had to have the last laugh. "Wouldn't think of it."

He walked over to the room where the girls waited. The door opened, and in peeked Tharsouris. His grin stretched from ear to pointed ear.

"Pack your bags, you're coming with me."

Silence weighed heavily on the trio on their walk from the Mystic Ward to the Forlorn Cavern. The mood seemed to emanate from Aquatic, her unusually dour mood spreading like a fog.

"This is my house. There are two beds upstairs. Set your luggage there and change into something else."

The two girls ran upstairs, and Mhaya asked, "But where will you sleep?"

Tharsouris acted offended. "Please, don't underestimate my mastery of the arcane."

The girls busy, Tharsouris took that time to conjure some food. The magical exsertion had his breathing coming out in ragged breaths. He sat down with a sigh, trying to control his breathing.

Soon enough, one of the gnomes came stomping down the stairs.

"Wow, you cook fast!" Mhaya exclaimed, staring at the steaming plates of food.

"What did I say about my magic?"

"Don't underestimate it!"

Tharsouris smiled.

"Now why isn't Aquala down yet?"

"It's Aquatic, and she stayed upstairs because she smelled the food."

"Why would she do that?"

"Bink didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"That Aquatic isn't allowed food. I'm not sure why, but I know she vomits it back up later."


	11. Crownless

**Cherish My Loving Curse ** _-chapter 11_

"Bink didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"That Aquatic isn't allowed food. I'm not sure why, but I know she vomits it back up later."

Tharsouris placed a hand to his hairless chin and absently scratched it. After a moment, he said, "I'll go talk to her."

He found Aquatic absorbed in a thick tome. When he heard a creaking sound, she dropped the book and stood as stiff as the floodboard he stepped on. She whipped around, staring at his feet. She seemed to realize something and her head snapped up, eyes wide with apparent surprise.

Tharsouris raised an eyebrow in question, but Aquatic had her head down again, retrieving the book.

"Aquatic," Tharsouris started, deciding saying her name would be best. "Why aren't you downstairs eating?"

"Bink wouldn't allow me."

"Bink isn't here."

The little gnome looked up, curiosity etched in her features.

"Come here."

Aquatic followed him down and was led to a seat at the table. Tharsouris served her a small helping of food. She inspected the warm eggs with a few pokes of her fork, then stared at Tharsouris as if asking if this was a trick.

Aquatic tried to vacuum everything up, but Tharsouris made her stop and eat slowly. While they ate, tharsouris chatted up the girls.

"So, what did Bink feed you?"

Mhaya said, "Mostly bread and creatures we killed in Dun Morogh. Sometimes Bink bought more exotic food."

Tharsouris nodded and turned to Aquatic. "What about you, Aquatic, what did you eat?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing at all?"

"No."

Tharsouris pressed on. "No food, no drink, no potions?"

"Not since the first week of my apprenticeship. Bink sometimes has me drink a strange potion, though."

"Strange potion?" Tharsouris echoed.

"Sometimes she meets with people who smell like burnt hair and buys potions from them that she makes me drink."

"What effects do the potions have?"

"Usually they make my stomach hurt until I puke. Sometimes they do nothing."

Mhaya commented, "Bink never told me about any potions. Why is she giving them to you?"

Aquatic shrugged and took a bite of spice bread. Tharsouris's fork returned to its place at the side of the plate, its returner deep in thought. Tharsouris stood up.

"I'll be back in a bit. In the meantime, make yourselves at home. Aquatic, try to keep that food down."

Tharsouris left and went to Bink's house. He forewent the traditional knock and Blinked inside. He found the stairs and saw the result of the attack for the first time.

A young dwarf, an acolyte of the cathedral if the robe was anything to go by, lay slumped face-down on the bed. Tharsouris stepped around the body, eyeing the kill carefully. There were no markings of any kind that revealed the nature of the cause of death, except for a small trickle of blood from the ear.

Once satisfied with that, he searched for another sign. Like the first, this sign was nowhere to be found. The dwarf had soft hands, the hands of a healer, not that of a brutal fighter. He found no lingering magic on the hands, nor any weapon lying around. Only a short, broken stick.

Not quite satisfied, he headed to another room; Bink's study, he remembered. He knocked twice, and smiled when he heard the resulting clatter of books as they were knocked off a desk.

He said in a smug voice, "I didn't scare you, did I?"

He knew she could hear the laughter in his voice.

"No, no-just surprised me, that's all."

He let his chuckle be heard. He asked in an innocent voice, "Why? What were you doing?"

"If you must know, I was researching alchemy to see if I could find anything to help with Aquatic's condition."

Liar. Bink wouldn't have resorted to unreliable remedies without thoroughly researching alchemy. He left her to believe she had him caught.

However, two can play at that game.

"I came to find out what you planned on teaching the kids next."

"You like to get to things right away, don't you? I almost forgot. I'll get the books."

There was a shuffle of books, then Bink handed Tharsouris a few books and told him the chapters he was to teach them. He raised an eyebrow at one of the titles.

"The Dangers of The Warlock? Really?"

"You know I can't trust you, and I want them to know that."

"I thought you didn't want them to know."

"I don't, but I want them to practice caution when they do."

"Fair enough."

When Tharsouris returned, he was surprised to find Aquatic awake, looking out the window at the small lake below.

"What are you doing up? It's still night."

Aquatic was silent for a long time. She said, "I puked after you left and I cleaned it up."

"Is that what's bothering you?"

Silence.

"No? Is it the attack?"

A nod.

"Don't worry about it. Bink is dealing with it, and I'll protect you until we can be sure no one else will come after you."

Aquatic jerked her head toward him and burst out, "But I killed him!"

"-In self-defense. If you hadn't, who knows what he would have done to you? Or Mhaya, for that matter?"

"But I killed him!" she repeated. "How can something like that possibly be excused?"

Tharsouris smiled at her, a solemn sheen to his eyes. "In the world we live in, it's either kill or be killed."

Before Aquatic could say anything, Tharsouris went on. "If you hadn't killed that dwarf, he would have killed you. And believe me when I say he would have killed you. He wouldn't have been there if he didn't have a reaosn to."

"But he was my friend!"

"Friend? No, friends don't attack friends. Whatever bonds you had with him, sever them. They will only drag you down, and in time, do the same to everyone around you."

Aquatic stared out the window, not looking at the lake, even though it filled her vision.

Tharsouris stood up. "Right," he said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Now try to get some sleep."

He left the room, a spell for conjuring a bed already on his lips.


	12. The Siren

**Cherish My Loving Curse** _-chapter 12 (The other day I realized the chapter numbers got mixed up at some point.)_

Silence lay on the room like a thick blanket. The blanket steadily rose and fell again, moved only by soft breathing. The sound had no effect on the stillness of the dark. However, something else did.

Two green glows appeared side by side, eerily floating to the middle of the room. They narrowed as they landed on an unseen object.

"Good morning!" Tharsouris sang, lighting the torches in the room with a sweep of his arm. He snapped his fingers, which was followed by a yelp as two beds disappeared. He strode over and plucked a book off Aquatic's head.

Waving the old green tome in front of her, he asked, "What were you doing with this book? You weren't reading it, were you?" A smile flit across Tharsouris's face. "Because then you would have defied my order to get some sleep."

Aquatic's tired eyes finally focused on the swinging book in front of her, and they snapped open. Mouth gaping like a fish, she scrambled backwards until reaching the wall.

Tharsouris's face fell at the reaction. He looked at the cover and his eyebrows shot up to meet his black hair. Wisps of smoke rose from burned-in runes, and reeked of sulphur. The smoke curled to caress his cheek and tickle his ear.

He grabbed Aquatic's arm and, despite her protests, dragged her to another room. She stumbled over her long nightgown, stomping the ground with a sound that reminded Tharsouris of the trot of a horse. He let her go, locked the door, and placed a few warding spells on the room.

Tharsouris looked to Aquatic, face stern and revealing little emotion. He held the book between them, ignoring how she cowered before it.

"What were you doing with this book?" He demanded, voice as calm as his expression.

"I-I don't know. It wasn't there when I went to sleep."

Tharsouris took a deep breath to steady himself. "Aquatic," he began, slower. "I don't want you to lie to me. Now, why did I find you with this book?"

"I told you, I don't know!" Aquatic said, almost desperately.

Tharsouris sighed. "Can you at least tell me if you looked at any of it?"

Silence permeated the air like a heavy fog. Tharsouris's eyes bore into Aquatic's, yet after a few seconds, Aquatic had to look away.

"We'll talk about this later."

* * *

Tharsouris spoke a few words, and the tingling of magic faded away. Aquatic watched his boots walk out, and then listened as Mhaya ran down the stairs.

Aquatic could no longer hear the assurances of love from the book, however, she found herself glad to be distanced from the writing on demon magic.

Aquatic shivered. It was bad enough she saw the runes every time she closed her eyes for sleep. Last night she had silently called for guidance, and the book had answered; with comforting words that filled her with warmth. Aquatic never realized what had answered until Tharsouris showed her. When she had first read it those years ago, it didn't call out, so she never recognized it.

Walking back to her room, Aquatic felt slimy inside. She shouldn't have read the book in the first place. If she hadn't, she wouldn't have heard it, and Tharsouris would never have found her with it, and she wouldn't be in trouble. She vaguely wondered what the punishment would be; whipping, shouting, being hit with pieces of scrap metal, etc.

Her books told her nothing about punishments, and living with Bink and Mhaya had taught her that the punishments Sicco had given her were not the norm. However, she wasn't sure about Tharsouris.

Without even realizing it, Aquatic had dressed and walked downstairs. While lost in thought, she had somehow put on her apprentice robe and her shoes, which for some reason felt more uncomfortable than they had before. She ate her food at a much slower pace than yesterday, her usual enthusiasm dulled from her pessimistic thoughts.

"Today I thought we might do some training. Mhaya, you will cast the magic, but Aquatic, you won't be saying any incantations as your punishment."

Aquatic almost paused in her eating, but continued, only staring at Tharsouris. Maybe he wasn't like Sicco.

Tharsouris had Mhaya perform a few cantrips and a few spells reserved for battle. After, he led them to the lake located right outside his home. He conjured two fishing poles and handed one to Aquatic.

"This is how you're going to train during your time with me," explained Tharsouris, "Aquatic and I will fish, and when we feel a little tug, we'll pull hard enough for the fish to jump out. That's when you come in, Mhaya. You hit the flying fish with a spell, but you have to start casting early and hold the magic until a fish comes. In a fortnight, Aquatic's punishment will be over and she'll join you."

Mhaya nodded, pondering on the information.

Aquatic asked, "How will I learn anything until then?"

"Some of the best lessons are learned by watching," Tharsouris replied. "Besides, I'll be quizzing you."

"Then let's get fishing!"

* * *

Whereas the last few chapter titles were completely random, "The Siren" actually has a reason for being picked. I'll spoil the fun and tell you: It's because the book is like a Siren from Greek mythology.

I seem to have a tendency to only have one event happen in each chapter. I'm trying to fix that.

Well, we're back to Aquatic's point of view. I decided to wait until I got to a point where I wouldn't have to write a bunch of grief. I have no clue how that works. My friend got all offended when I asked her about it. So I looked online, and found the seven steps of grief. I'll try to incorporate those into the story, as well as another gradual behavior-related thing that will lead up to a plot point.

As it is, we've come back to that book that briefly popped up in the second (or was it third?) chapter. There was also a mention of it in chapter 11.

Aquatic's secret is very close to being found out. Every event has some significance to her secret.

NOTE: This was done a few days prior of my updating. The login error was fixed for me two days earlier, but I was too lazy and actually forgot about it at times. (ex: "Why don't I have any reviews? I should have at least one reader on alert who will re- oh.)


	13. Live To Tell The Tale

I was so excited writing this chapter. It didn't go through much editing, but it did go through a rewrite.

* * *

**Cherish My Loving Curse** _-chapter 13_

"Aquatic, it was not very polite to cover Old Ironjaw in the remains of your breakfast."

Aquatic's face flushed again, turning a beet red. "I didn't mean to! My stomach just really hurt and I couldn't help it!"

Mhaya giggled, finding the conversation funny.

Tharsouris opened his mouth, but at that moment, three sharp knocks came from the door. He closed his mouth and opened the door. Before he could open his mouth, he was interrupted.

"Greetings! I answer to the name Rhygwyn Stratodrive, son of Snoonose Stratodrive and Nefti, and grandson of the Hagin Goblincannon! I've come to your humble abode with the assignment of interrogating both witnesses and other on the affair of the defunct of the aristocrat of the Stormwind Cathedral. Due to evidence of evidence of evidence of inability to retain memories in witnesses of tragic events, these fastidiousness guards have been ordered to order me to order you around in the confidence of gaining information before the parasitic abnormality deteriorates your cerebellum completely. I sincerely deniably apologize for any casualty the process of the investigation will most certainly burden you with."

Tharsouris stared slack-jawed at the old gnome covered head-to-toe in complicated gadgets, likening him to a crazy invention. Aquatic's eyes ran over the individual, then looked at the two accompanying him. The dwarves beside the mechanical gnome also seemed to be caught in such a daze.

"Now if you don't mind," Rhygwyn chattered away at his squirrel pace, "It'll only take a chunk of time worth as much copper as a mechanical chicken. The interrogation will consist of-"

Another gnome head popped up. "Rhygwyn! I can't seem to remember when I last talked with you! Was it the time with the enchanted goggles? Or when I tried to make that arcanomechanical ley fluxometer?"

"Mhaya, I believe we last bandied on the incident that left Bink in a coma lasting several days. The morsal of information we managed to get out of her has continued to lead us in circles." Rhygwyn snorted, causing a fan on his elbow to spin. "'Quantum zombies', indeed."

With hardly any prompt, both gnomes plunged into a conversation on some invention as if they had forgotten all about the investigation.

"-structomater disables the explosive capabilities of the composita-"

Aquatic found herself fascinated by the chatting gnomes and the occasion engineering term used in favor of a more common word. Tharsouris shook his head beside her. He turned his attention to the guards the gnome had brought with him. "Tea?"

The guards steadily nodded, both still caught up in the gnomes' conversation.

As the gnomes' conversation became even more complicated with the increasing frequency of gnomish words thrown in, Aquatic's mind worked tirelessly to translate everything. As another gnomish word or mechanical jargon spouted forth, her mouth formed the word as her mind searched in the context its meaning.

Something poked her shoulder, causing Aquatic to flinch and whirl around to face Tharsouris.

"Tea?"

* * *

Much later.

"You're finally done talking about- whatever it is you were talking about?"

Rhygwyn huffed. "We were talking about the effects of putting safety breaks that would immediately activate upon contact with non-living flesh on a binary-fission analog barometer, and Mhaya thought-"

"That they should be called _boringers_," interjected Mhaya. "_Blue_ _boringers_."

Not seeing Tharsouris shake his head, Mhaya continued, "It doesn't even make any sense. All it does is shut down the device as soon as the gnome is dead, and doesn't even protect itself from being stolen by an undead."

"If the Horde picks from a dead gnome, it'll have shut down and be absolutely useless to them, and thus they'll leave it alone."

"And what if there's an engineer with them? They'll recognize it as a piece of mechanical genius and want to reverse-engineer-"

And so it began again.

* * *

Aquatic and Rhygwyn sat in the dining room, listening to Tharsouris and the two dwarves make small talk in another room. Their room was warded, though only so their words wouldn't be heard unless they opened the door.

Rhygwyn smiled at her, evidently trying to calm her. He spoke in a different language, and from a few of the words he said, it was the same language he spoke in to Mhaya earlier. _"What is your rune?"_

That last word didn't sound right. _"Sorry?"_ Aquatic asked, in the same language as Rhygwyn.

"_Your rune?"_

Aquatic shook her head, her brows furrowed under her long bangs.

A pincer on Rhygwyn's ankle clicked in annoyance. He pointed to himself. _"My rune is Rhygwyn. What is your rune?"_

It clicked. Rune suddenly had a meaning; name. Rhygwyn's face flooded with relief, telling Aquatic that her face showed her understanding.

"_Finally. Now, your name, in the traditional way."_

Aquatic assumed he wanted her to introduce herself similar to how he introduced himself at the door.

"_My name is Aquatic Thermaplugg, daughter of Sicco Thermaplugg and Setine."_

"_Thermaplugg? Impossible. It would have been announced at your birth and it would be first priority to locate you after the evacuation, and I would remember a name like Aquatic. What is your real name and real lineage?"_

"_I don't have any name other than Aquatic, and Sicco is my father."_

"_I highly doubt that any gnome -even one such as Thermaplugg- would have named their child Aquatic."_

"_Sicco didn't name me. Ergrim did."_

"_What is he, your godfather?'_

"_I don't think so. After I escaped, I found Ergrim and told him I didn't have a name, so he gave me one."_

"_Why didn't Sicco or your mother name you?"_

"_Sicco only ever referred to me as 'it', and Setine,"_ Aquatic winced at the name, as it required a certain slithering sound to pronounce correctly. _"said she would name me when I was 'ready'."_

"_Alright,"_ Rhygwyn said, unnerved by the odd explanation, but accepting it nonetheless.

"_So onto the questioning. When did you realize your dream to become a mage?"_ Rhygwyn settled back into his chair, the goggles on his forehead lowering over his eyes. An extra mechanical arm craned over his head, holding both a clipboard and a pencil, somehow managing to write everything that was being said.

"_A few years ago, when Mhaya showed me a conjuring spell after Bink agreed to train me."_

Rhygwyn nodded, his mechanical arm scribbling away.

"_What did Bink teach you, in the magical sense?"_

"_Arcane, and the two elements it can manifest; fire and frost."_

A screw popping from his shoulder, Rhygwyn prodded further. _"Anything related to shadow?"_

Aquatic felt a spark of foreign excitement even as her eyes widened. _"No, never! Bink wouldn't even allow Mhaya and I to talk about the legends that had mentions of it."_

"_And as an act of rebellion, you stole a spellbook and taught yourself fel magic,"_ Rhygwyn said with an accusing undertone.

"_No!"_ Rhygwyn smirked. No contraption activated or spun.

"_Did you kill Ergrim Stonefist?"_

Aquatic was caught off guard by the accusation, and her first reaction was to retaliate. She opened her mouth, but the outraged cry never left her throat. She choked on it, the pain blooming in her heart and throat prompting tears, yet no hot tears flowed down her cheeks.

Her eyes dry, she coughed out, _"I-I-I d-don't know."_

The sound of what must have been all of Rhygwyn's contraptions whirring and clicking and clanking was deafening.

Over the din, Rhygwyn asked, _"How did you learn that spell?"_

Aquatic waited for the noise to die before she answered with a hint of resentment. _"I don't know. One second I was chanting a Fireball, the next my tongue was burning."_

"_Have you ever come into contact with any other fel magic?"_

Aquatic searched her memories for any hint of the evil magic, and found herself conflicted on the book. She frowned. _"I don't know."_

"_Have you ever ingested a swirling purple potion?"_

Potions of all colors flashed through Aquatic's mind. _"I don't know."_

"_Why did you kill Stonefist?"_

Aquatic's eyes burned again, still without tears. _"I don't know!"_

"_Why was Stonefist in your room?"_

"_I don't know!"_ Aquatic screeched, tired of the incessant questions.

Rhygwyn lurched up and started toward the girl. _"Aquatic-"_

But Aquatic wasn't listening. Rhygwyn's action had reminded her of other robot suits. Engineering breakthroughs, he called them. Bone breakers, she'd thought them. The clear, sickening crack after sickening crack accompanied by a mechanical buzzing resounded in her ears. Then came the laughter. The high-pitched, erratic laughter always came at the sound of her staccato screams, which would sometimes come out breathy when she bit her tongue off.

Back then she had always felt scared at the arrival of one of those robotic suits. Now, however, she felt only anger. Anger at the pain, anger at Sicco, anger at the absent tears, anger at Rhygwyn.

She jerked away from his hand, hissing, "_**Get away from me!**_"

Rhygwyn stopped. He shuddered, and dropped to the floor, curling in the fetal position. A gear whirred on his knee. As he had always done, he ignored it, despite that it sliced at his nose. He shook with increasing severity, as though he had been left outside in the snow.

Aquatic stared at Rhygwyn, frozen to the stop. For the life of her she couldn't move her feet, cry for help, or even look away from the twitching gnome. A knock came from the door.

"Aquatic? Rhygwyn? You've talked for over twice the time it took for my questioning. Is everything alright?" Tharsouris.

Aquatic found her voice and regained motor control, running to the door and flinging it open. "Tharsouris! Rhygwyn's shaking and won't stop!"

Tharsouris rushed to Rhygwyn and shouted a few spells, the arcane flickering at the tips of his fingers. His head snapped back to look at Aquatic, astonished. He snapped back to Rhygwyn almost as fast, who was now foaming at the mouth.

Tharsouris muttered another spell, too low for Aquatic to make out the words, but audible enough for her to recognize them from somewhere. A sudden flash of blue sent her stumbling back a few steps. The others either didn't see or ignored it, keeping their attention on Rhygwyn.

"Huh? Wha..?"

Rhygwyn sat up and wiped the blood off his lips and chin, looking around. "I'm not...dead?"

"Thankfully. Had Aquatic been a few more seconds late in alerting me to your condition, you would have died."

"Aqua-" The sight of her had a magical effect. Rhygwyn's mouth snapped shut. Without a word, he ran out, tripping over the doorway. The guards he had brought with him stared at his back, one of them saying he had gone barmy.

* * *

I had wanted to reveal Aquatic's secret at the end of this chapter, but I suppose I'll reveal it at the end of the next chapter, which I hope will be quite long like this one. This chapter totaled 1,771 words, and the usual of my chapters are 900 words. I decided to have Sicco pop up in this chapter, with a mention of Aquatic's mother, Seltine, whose name I made up.

Something to ponder on: Aquatic's secret is tainting her~


	14. End Of All Hope

1,838 words. Longest chapter yet. I fussed over this chapter long and hard, and finally said, "To heck with it, I'm posting this."

* * *

The rest of the day continued without any of the previous enthusiasm, the silence giving me a persistent headache. Thankfully, the night passed without the book's calling.

In the middle of a quiet breakfast, Tharsouris announced that he would be gone the entire day.

"I have a very important meeting to attend in Stormwind. Both of you are forbidden from joining me," Tharsouris said, before either of us could say anything. "You two will stay here. No one will be going out, and no one will be coming in. Is that clear?"

I only nodded, my headache having carried over from the day before and thus leaving me with limited ability to think straight. Beside me, Mhaya spoke up, stabbing a dagger through my head.

"But you're supposed to be watching us. What if someone else like that dwarf comes by?"

I winced. Mhaya's voice raised half an octave with each word. The dagger pressed deeper.

"My dear, I have eyes everywhere. Anyone who has half a brain will be able to see that."

That deep voice contrasted sharply with Mhaya's, tearing the blade -which must have had jagged edges- from my brain.

"But what about-"

"Gah! Shut up already!" I snapped, ready to impale whoever dared speak against my command with my fork.

Tharsouris left after my outburst. As soon as he shut the door behind him, Mhaya looked at me, a sly grin on her face.

"Tharsouris is gone."

"And?" I prompted her to explain herself further. My headache ebbed away.

"All of his possessions are unguarded."

My eyes widened as my mind showed me the equivalent of a reader's heaven, but I quickly chopped down my hopes. "He said he has eyes everywhere. Won't he know we're in his study?"

"Do you really expect him to to care if we read a few of those towers of books in his study?"

"You've been in his study?"

"I caught a peek of it yesterday before breakfast," Mhaya said casually.

"What was it like?"

Mhaya smile grew wider. "Why don't you come see for yourself?"

I shoved the rest of her food in my mouth as my answer. We ran the few long strides to the study, and scrambled over each other trying to reach the doorknob first.

Mhaya picked up a book with an interesting title, and tried to absorb every detail. I paid less attention to each book, instead skimming entire books, searching for something that might be of worth. When I found something new, I read it more closely until it had nothing more to offer.

There was another bookcase, this one set apart from the rest. The books looked older than the rest, and scattered on and around them were strange plant parts and powders and even a few dark stains. Oddly, it smelled delicious. But the thing that stuck out most to me was that the entire collection shimmered with a blue film.

"Magic," I gasped, my breath causing the shimmering coat to shiver.

"Huh? What is?" Mhaya looked up from her book. She came over and peered at a few titles. She reached for a book, but drew her hand back when a tiny spark leaped off the shield and stung her.

"Ow!"

"It's warded. I guess that's what the magic is."

"What magic?"

"The books are all glossy."

Mhaya looked surprised, and peered closely at the books, careful not to get too close and suffer another sting. After a minutes, she turned her scrutinizing stare at me.

"There's nothing there."

"Can't you see it?" (A/N: I'm tempted to put "It glowed like a fairy on crack," but Warcraft doesn't have fairies, nor crack.)

Mhaya shook her head.

"But it's right there." How could she not see the bluish sheen? "Why can't you see it?"

"Aquatic, the wards are invisible, like all wards."

"But it's right here!" I thrust my hand toward the shield. There was a tickle, and in a moment of surprised realization, I had bypassed the ward. My eyes widened and the shield wavered. Shivering, the coat came apart, unraveling around my hand.

"Aquatic? What are you gawking at?" Mhaya asked, waving a hand in front of my face.

"The ward," I gasped out, eyes watching the last of the magic unravel into nothingness. "It's gone."

Mhaya looked surprised. "Really?" She tentatively reached a hand forward with her eyes closed, but opened them when she touched book. She sighed in relief when she realized that meant she didn't get stung. "That's weird."

Mhaya pulled out the book her hand had reached. Her eyes squinted, as though the book would change.

"Odd title."

"What is it?" I craned my neck to look at the book.

"Voidwalker."

For some unknown reason, I felt an excited shiver pass through my body.

"One would think it's in a different language if they never opened it. Well, there are some weird runes in this section."

My blood froze, then started pounding through my ears like raging magma. I made a grab for the book, Mhaya's grip on it slackening in surprise.

"Hey! Aquatic, what-" I shoved the book back where it was and turned to Mhaya.

"We leave these books alone, got it?"

Mhaya gaped, but acquiesced, sighing as a chance to learn from a rare book slipped from her grasp.

Tharsouris came back much later that day, not long after we retired for the night. He woke us up. He looked slightly green. He told us he would take us shopping the next day.

* * *

Mhaya cuddled her new book as she slept, mumbling one-sided conversations.

"I want that one, and that one, not that one, and of course that one...Wadya mean you can't afford it? You're Uncle Theserious..."

On the other side of the room lay Aquatic, lost in the world of sleep. Yet no dreams came to bless her slumber. Instead, war steeds of the night ravaged her mind.

Aquatic had her mouth open in a silent scream, her eyes staring through the ceiling.

Dream soldiers pleaded for mercy as their comrades fell around them. Sharp claws halved swords, sharper tongues halved spirits. Buildings collapsed, but debris quickly hid under blood and shredded flesh. One could walk over every inch of the city and never touch ground. Whereas soldiers fell to their knees at such a sight, the wicked revelled in it.

Laughter cut through the carnage; starting nervous, growing to unnerving hysterics. Only a dream, a dream this must be! Such a macabre sight could never come to pass!

The cries of grief and the crack of bones - it all turned trivial. Nothing mattered anymore. Others, caught in a similar fit of absurd hilarity, believed the same.

* * *

That morning, after breakfast, Tharsouris said that the king had requested an audience with Aquatic that day.

"I want both of you to leave a good impression on the king, so as to show him your respect, you're going to get cleaned up. We're going down to a lake in Dun Morogh. I don't trust any of these finicky gnomish devices."

Aquatic spoke up, "Bink always used a cleaning spell on me."

Tharsouris narrowed his eyes. "What cleaning spell, exactly?"

"It combined fire and water manifestations."

"That spell is reserved for scrubbing down alchemy tools. Not living beings. Ah, well, I guess we know why your skin is so red."

"Why would Bink even use that spell on you?" Mhaya asked.

"It's a mystery. I think we can all agree that Bink is a tad bit crazy."

* * *

"Here we are!"

The three dismounted the mechanostriders they bought and stared at the lake. The vast, frozen lake with only a small patch of water.

"You want us to bathe in_ that_? It's freezing!" Mhaya stared at Tharsouris, the look of horror on her face begging him to answer no.

Though amused, Tharsouris shook his head, hiding his grin under a mask of mock disappointment. "Tut, tut, Mhaya. How many times must I say this? Don't underestimate my magic."

"You can't possibly think you can melt the ice _and_ bring it to a more hospitable temperature."

"Watch."

Tharsouris pulled forth the appropriate amount of arcane energy, and paused, letting the magic set at his fingertips. Finally, he brought up his hands and chanted.

Aided by the fire manifestation of the arcane, the ice melted over the lake. Vapor rose from the area at their feet as well. When Tharsouris dropped his hands to his side, little over half of the lake stayed frozen, while the rest settled at a sleepy temperature.

A cheeky smile adorned Tharsouris's face. "What is it I keep wanting you to remember, Aquatic?"

As if automatically, Aquatic stiffened and stated, "To not underestimate your mastery of the arcane."

The smile faltered, but leaped back in place. Tharsouris resisted the urge to bring his fingers to his face. .

"And what did Mhaya do?"

Aquatic relaxed at the name, but not entirely. "Underestimate your capabilities."

"Good. Now you two can undress."

Mhaya blushed furiously, and blurted out, "Not with you watching!"

"Why? I assure you, I've already seen it all."

Mhaya stuck out her tongue. "Because you're an old man."

Tharsouris pouted and stuck out his tongue as well. "I'm only six hundred and forty-five years old."

"Exactly!"

"Fine, fine. Leave your underclothes on, then."

"You still have to turn around."

Grumbling something about the absurdity of privacy, Tharsouris did so.

The gnomes turned their backs to each other, furthering their privacy. They discarded their robes and shoes, leaving only their shirts and shorts.

"You two can get in the water at any time, you know," Tharsouris said, after a while and hearing no splash of water. "Kids-?"

Tharsouris turned around and fell silent. His eyes flicked to Mhaya, but her expression indicated that she had no prior knowledge of this. They jerked back to Aquatic.

Aquatic stiffened and met Tharsouris's stare, as though meeting his challenge. The elf arched an brow. The gnome mirrored in kind. Not a word spoken, a thousand communicated. Tharsouris broke the still silence.

Tharsouris walked over to Aquatic, and dropped to one knee. The gnome continued to appear oblivious as to what was going on, yet Tharsouris gave no explanation, lost in his own little discoverer's wonder.

"Who would have thought?" Tharsouris mused, finally allowing his fingers to tap his lips. "Rarely is one of such lineage abandoned in this continent, and yet such a one has been hiding under my nose."

Tharsouris trailed his hand over the smooth metal skin, barely touching the spine of spikes at the back. He slid his hand to the first joint, hesitating before traveling to the second. As his fingers met flesh, they twitched, as if wanting to go on. They slid back down, apparently changing ambition. Tharsouris traced the thorn jutting from behind the first joint, with his fingers, careful not to prick himself on the sharp point. His fingers danced on it, teasing the dangerous point. In one swift move, he snapped it off.

* * *

I experimented with first person at the beginning. Please tell me if you'd prefer the story to be in first person or if I could have used it better.

MWHAHAHAHA! Aquatic's secret is finally found out! What now for our unfortunate little gnome? Is she even a gnome?

Those of you who have played a certain part of Warcraft, you know what she is. Those of you who haven't, well, you have no idea what she is. Unless you read a ton on that subject. And it's a pretty specific subject hidden in bits of religion and fantasy. But mostly fantasy.

EDIT: Urgh, I just noticed I never worked on a certain part of this chapter. I completely missed it. *sigh* I suppose I'll leave it alone. It's an amazingly simplified version of what it could have been, and it gives you some insight on what some of my rough drafts look like.


	15. Ocean Soul

I finally managed to get myself to edit this chapter. Of course, don't expect another chapter too soon. I'm going to try to update each one of my stories sometime soon, and after I cycle through what I can, I'm focusing my attention on Dissociative Magics.

So, I don't own Warcraft, Magni, or Gelbin. Tharsouris is mostly mine. Aquatic: mine to torture.

* * *

_~~You might want to go back a chapter and reread a little to refresh your memory.~~_

Tharsouris blinked as if coming out of a trance, staring down at the spike of bone he now held. Aquatic crumpled to the ground, pain shooting through her leg.

"What - was - that - for!" she managed to yell through sharp gasps.

Tharsouris kept his eyes trained on the spike, noticing a thin line of blood where it broke off. "You had a spell that put me in a trance. That was the only way to disrupt it, I'm afraid."

"I've never been able to cast a mage spell before, and you expect me to believe I cast one strong enough to catch you, a mage stronger than Bink?"

Tharsouris kept from wincing at the harsh tone, keeping his own voice level. "M'dear, even the most powerful of mages would have a hard time escaping the passive magics of a demon."

The small form in front of him started to shake violently. He snapped his attention to her, ignoring the hooves and thorned metallic legs in favor of Aquatic's ashen pallor.

"D-d-d-d-d-de-demon-n?"

Tharsouris frowned. "It would appear I'm not the only one Bink has kept privy from secrets."

"Hold on - how do you know Aquatic's a demon?" Mhaya shook herself out of shock long enough to ask.

Tharsouris arched an eyebrow. "You can't tell by the hooves?"

"Those could mean she's part dreaeni!"

Tharsouris rolled his eyes. The first hooved humanoid to come to any gnome's mind would be the dreaeni, an alien race that joined the Alliance during the previous war. The dreaeni had luminescent blue skin, a tail, majestic horse-like hooves, and horns situated at the sides of their heads. Considering the lack of blue skin, Tharsouris felt it safe to say that Aquatic did not have a dreaeni ancestor.

"Aquatic, who were your parents?"

"Sicco Thermaplugg and Seltine."

Tharsouris's eyes widened. Thoughts flashed through his head, darkening his expression. Mhaya openly gaped at Aquatic.

"Thermaplugg's your father? No wonder you don't like talking about the irradiation of Gnomeregan!"

"It's not that, I just have no idea what it is," Aquatic insisted.

Mhaya giggled. "Right. What, did you live in the dungeons your whole life?"

Aquatic blinked. "Is that a bad thing?"

Mhaya mistook Aquatic's confusion for puzzlement over the phrase. "It's a human expression that I altered to fit gnomes and dwarves."

"Huh? Sicco did keep me locked in the dungeon."

"What? That's terrible!"

"Aquatic here is actually very lucky for one of her kind. Be glad she wasn't killed outright or taken straight to the Twisting Nether," Tharsouris broke in. "We'll talk about this later. Right now, you two have an important appointment with the king that you want to look nice for."

The three stayed silent for the majority of the afternoon beyond simple orders given by Tharsouris. They went about it all mechanically without objection, The monotony was broken when Tharsouris discovered a set of wings, too small for any kind of flight, on Aquatic's back. His eyes promised swift death when the water made their hair cling to their scalps, a pair of tiny black horns revealed on Aquatic's forehead.

When the three arrived before King Magni Bronzebeard, they stayed silent as guards led Aquatic to a separate room to question her. A heavily armored dwarf, jewels swirling with magic adorning his flame beard, stood waiting, his posture declaring his status.

"You are to stay silent unless spoken to directly." The guard directed the warning to Aquatic. They stepped back from her, bowing at the waist. "My king, the accused." Aquatic turned her gaze to the towering dwarf, a door closing behind her.

Magni joined his gnome equal, High Tinker Gelbin Mekkatorque, and motioned for Aquatic to sit as well. A table separated the rulers from the accused. A mage stood in the corner, chanting a spell to record every sound.

"So who are we questioning again?'

"Aquatic Thermaplugg."

"Ah, yes, I remember her. I carried her out of Gnomeregan during the evacuation. At that time, she said she didn't have a first name. So, how are you doing?" he directed this last question to Aquatic, acting like in a casual conversation.

"Mekkatorque-!" Magni started.

"I'm training to be a mage," Aquatic cut in.

Gelbin smiled warmly. After shooting a smug smirk at Magni, of course.

Magni sighed. "No small talk. We came here for answers, and so we will get answers."

Gelbin sighed as well, but kept the smile. "Alright, did you kill Stonefist?"

Aquatic tried to speak, but the words wouldn't pass her throat. After a moment of confusion, she realized that she was crying. Not with tears, no, something held those back. Inside, she wracked with emotion.

She tried once more to answer, but again, her invisible tears stopped her. In her mind, she shook herself and snarled. Tharsouris said Ergrim had tried to kill her. Thus, he was no one she should care about. But he helped her and that look in his eyes- She cut off the thought. Ergrim was dead. Nothing more to it.

Aquatic glared at Gelbin and Magni, and answered in a cold voice, "Yes."

"How?"

"I'm not sure."

"Rhygwyn reported that it was a spell. Care to elaborate?"

"I tried to cast a spell. I am a mage."

"What kind of spell?"

"A Fireball," Aquatic replied in the same cold voice.

Gelbin glanced at the note he held. "It says here you cast a fel spell. Care to explain that?"

"I can't. I never cast any shadow spell."

"Mhm." Gelbin read over the note in his hand again. "Aquatic, have you ever been taught anything about fel magic?"

"No. Bink forbid us from talking about it."

"What abou' Tharsouris?" Magi asked.

"I met him after the incident with Ergrim."

Magi nodded, but didn't look convinced.

"Anyway," Gelbin said, "Have you ever ingested-"

"I don't have any idea of what potions I might have ingested."

If Gelbin was surprised at how she knew what he was going to say, he hid it well. "Oh? Why might that be?"

"Bink gave me a different potion nearly every week for three years. Do you really expect me to remember all of them?"

"As evasive as her father," Gelbin muttered, reading over the note again. Aquatic almost snarled, but kept her emotions in check, smoothing her face into a blank slate.

"Why didja kill Ergrim?" Magni asked quietly, a sad look in his eyes.

"I didn't want to."

"Then why?"

"I panicked. I defended myself."

Something she said caught Gelbin's attention. "Why did you panic?"

"He was trying to stab me with a dagger. I think I would have panicked."

"A dagger?" This caught both Gelbin's and Magni's attention. Gelbin scoured the note over and over.

"Yes. It glowed red."

Gelbin whispered something to Magni, who shook his head and whispered something back. He turned back to Aquatic.

"Why was he in your room?"

Aquatic gave him a level stare and said dryly, "I assume he wanted to kill me."

"Do you have any idea as to why he might have wanted to kill you?"

"No."

"Next question: Why did you attack Rhygwyn?"

Aquatic's cold demeanor faltered. "I-I didn't mean t-to hurt him. Is he okay?"

Magni started to answer, but Gelbin cut him off. "He's on his deathbed."

Aquatic's eyes went wide. "Wha-what?"

"You heard me; he's dying. You're killing him."

Aquatic paled. "No-no, I didn't-" She cut herself off, her face turning hard once more. "You're lying. Rhygwyn is perfectly fine. Tharsouris cured him of whatever he had and sent him on his way."

"Very perceptive. But, you admitted you attacked Rhygwyn."

Aquatic broke eye contact and stared at the table. "I never meant to hurt him."

"Then what did you intend to do?"

"Just get him away from me."

"Why?"

Aquatic never bothered opening her mouth. They wouldn't accept her explanation of "he scared me." Instead, she opted to slide her blank mask back on.

* * *

I've been neglecting this story for some time, haven't I? I've been busy with other fanfictions. At least Aquatic's secret is finally revealed. The last paragraph in chapter 14 was confusing, I admit. That thing went through a few revisions and I fussed over it before finally deciding there was no more that could be done. But, whatever. I think I left this partly because I stopped playing Warcraft after Aquatic reached level 85. Aquatic Thermaplugg is based off of my in-game character.

This story spawned from a habit of thinking about 'how did they get this way?' with every character I create in roleplay games. I pretty much have this belief that everyone is a sweet little angel at childhood until events mold their personality otherwise. Thus, I wondered how might an innocent child turn to using dark magics. Because of some setting in the unknown depths of my mind, I wanted everything that was in the game (everything) to match everything in my story (excluding some of the more confusing storyline in Warcraft). So that meant even if the Warcraft wiki said warlocks were just mages that turned to demonic magic, Aquatic couldn't use mage spells because warlocks in-game can't use mage spells. I had to think up something to explain that. So, I made her half-demon.

I was very..._sadistic_ in deciding to keep her locked up for several years. The 'locked up' wasn't the sadistic part, actually. It was that when she got out, she would be so happy and not take anything for granted, and so be genuinely happy with everything...and then I would crush every little speck of happiness out of her as her life comes crashing down, pinning guilt on her again and again so that she would be unable to be happy ever again.

When Tharsouris came into the picture, I had to do a ton of research to figure out how I could pass him off as a mage enough to fool Aquatic and Mhaya. I had to figure out how to mesh my already established rules of magic and Warcraft wiki's definitions of the different magics. I had several different theories before I managed to decide that Tharsouris has to dilute his magic to cast mage spells. But then that brought in problems with if the magic came from the individual or the planet, or a mix of the two. I'm not sure if I have that figured out.

Yup, random long exposition is random. I find that I tend to do that a lot in my stories now.

Aquatic still has another secret. Tharsouris will figure it out, of course, but I think it's more interesting on the _how_ he figures it out. I'll give you a hint t the secret: the headaches.

I need to put my notes on this story on my computer. So much easier to keep track of. It'd be organized, too. Er, due to laziness over finding my little notebook, I had no idea where I was going in this interrogation and so I'll end the chapter here and finish it in the next chapter.


End file.
